Letters to the Editor for Jan. 2, 2013

Published: Wednesday, January 2, 2013 at 6:01 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, December 31, 2012 at 8:59 p.m.

The restoration of Glen Springs could go a very long way toward improving Gainesville's water resources, but could even be much more beneficial to the community as a recreational area.

The city has an excellent opportunity to realize that suggestion by taking advantage of Nathan Collier's $1 million offer to purchase a property adjacent to his home. When Emmer Development Corp. developed Raintree, on Northwest 16th Avenue, we knew the land at the south end of the property was wetlands and offered it to the city.

Collier's offer would benefit thousands more each year than the wetlands that my company gifted to the city without recompense. I strongly support the suggestion, and hope the City Commission will accept Collier's offer.

In the long run, it could become one of the best actions the city could take and provide a recreational benefit beyond most anything the city now has in this area.

Phil Emmer,

Gainesville

Trauma: Save lives not market share

I wish that every city had a trauma center as nice as the new facility at Ocala Regional Medical Center. It's a matter of life and death.

I was disappointed to read last week in The Gainesville Sun that a lawsuit has been filed to shut the new trauma center down, despite the fact that the new trauma center isn't duplicating any services and is a critical service to residents in Marion and surrounding counties.

I just hope everyone in Gainesville and Ocala can focus on saving lives, not saving market share.

Marty Pallman,

Gainesville

No more ‘fixes' on Main Street, please

Say it isn't so.

While local drivers struggle with a poorly narrowed North Main Street (between Northeast Eighth Avenue and Northeast 16th Avenue), the City Commission rolls along with plans to destroy Main Street between Depot Road and Southwest 16th Avenue.

Please just fix the north part of Main Street near the post office and then leave it alone! Stop manipulating the streets so that you can force citizens out of their cars and on to foot and bicycle transportation.

This is the age of the automobile, and most people wish to travel by car.

Mary Bird,

Gainesville

Don't take my guns

The tragedy I see in firearms deaths is that the highest death rates are among young male adults, in places with strict gun laws. Most evolve from illegal activity and are gang related.

The average citizen doesn't have to fear weapons belonging to responsible gun owners. What has been reported about the most recent gun related tragedies is that the people who killed got their guns illegally, or from relatives who didn't secure them properly.

Restricting magazine size, ammunition sales, or types of weapons will not stop sick or deranged people from killing innocents. Gang members will always find a way to have guns.

I can probably speak for the majority of the law-abiding citizens, who own some 300 million firearms: We want to keep our weapons. The laws under which we purchased them were adequate, and need to be strictly enforced. The lack of uniform enforcement is the issue.

Richard DesChenes,

Archer

NRA oblivious

National Rifle Association advocates seem oblivious to the fact that their arguments against gun control are both threadbare and baseless. Nobody is suggesting guns be outlawed but rather that there should be reasonable limits to the type of weapons available to civilians and reasonable licensing and registration.

The most recent argument is that the issue is best addressed by more guns, not less, as evidenced by some instance of a gun-toting miscreant being stopped by a gun-toting patriot. The obvious fallacy of this argument is that, for any such instance, there are hundreds of deaths attributable to the easy access to firearms.

It is tragic that it took an incident like the Newtown massacre to bring society's focus back to the issues of gun control and the NRA lobby's hammerlock on Congress. Perhaps this will be the one positive consequence of this unspeakably horrendous event.

Don Goodman,

Archer

Show a little respect, Mr. President

For nearly the last four years President Barack Obama has continued to disrespect our country and our military.

First he refused to wear our flag on his lapel so as not to “hurt” others. He did his “Apology Tour.” His wife stated publicly that she was never proud of the U.S. until he was in office.

But what really gets under my skin is when he gets off of his helicopter. There is always a Marine at the bottom of the stairs saluting him. I've never seen him acknowledge the soldier in the least, and he salutes to the sky! How disrespectful can this be?

How could this country re-elect this person who wants to destroy America as we have known it?

<p><b>Take Collier's deal</b></p><p>The restoration of Glen Springs could go a very long way toward improving Gainesville's water resources, but could even be much more beneficial to the community as a recreational area.</p><p>The city has an excellent opportunity to realize that suggestion by taking advantage of Nathan Collier's $1 million offer to purchase a property adjacent to his home. When Emmer Development Corp. developed Raintree, on Northwest 16th Avenue, we knew the land at the south end of the property was wetlands and offered it to the city. </p><p>Collier's offer would benefit thousands more each year than the wetlands that my company gifted to the city without recompense. I strongly support the suggestion, and hope the City Commission will accept Collier's offer.</p><p>In the long run, it could become one of the best actions the city could take and provide a recreational benefit beyond most anything the city now has in this area.</p><p><i>Phil Emmer,</p><p>Gainesville</i></p><p><b>Trauma: Save lives not market share</b></p><p>I wish that every city had a trauma center as nice as the new facility at Ocala Regional Medical Center. It's a matter of life and death. </p><p>I was disappointed to read last week in The Gainesville Sun that a lawsuit has been filed to shut the new trauma center down, despite the fact that the new trauma center isn't duplicating any services and is a critical service to residents in Marion and surrounding counties. </p><p>I just hope everyone in Gainesville and Ocala can focus on saving lives, not saving market share.</p><p><i>Marty Pallman,</p><p>Gainesville</i></p><p><b>No more 'fixes' on Main Street, please</b></p><p>Say it isn't so. </p><p>While local drivers struggle with a poorly narrowed North Main Street (between Northeast Eighth Avenue and Northeast 16th Avenue), the City Commission rolls along with plans to destroy Main Street between Depot Road and Southwest 16th Avenue.</p><p>Please just fix the north part of Main Street near the post office and then leave it alone! Stop manipulating the streets so that you can force citizens out of their cars and on to foot and bicycle transportation. </p><p>This is the age of the automobile, and most people wish to travel by car.</p><p><i>Mary Bird,</p><p>Gainesville</i></p><p><b>Don't take my guns</b></p><p>The tragedy I see in firearms deaths is that the highest death rates are among young male adults, in places with strict gun laws. Most evolve from illegal activity and are gang related.</p><p>The average citizen doesn't have to fear weapons belonging to responsible gun owners. What has been reported about the most recent gun related tragedies is that the people who killed got their guns illegally, or from relatives who didn't secure them properly.</p><p>Restricting magazine size, ammunition sales, or types of weapons will not stop sick or deranged people from killing innocents. Gang members will always find a way to have guns.</p><p>I can probably speak for the majority of the law-abiding citizens, who own some 300 million firearms: We want to keep our weapons. The laws under which we purchased them were adequate, and need to be strictly enforced. The lack of uniform enforcement is the issue.</p><p><i>Richard DesChenes,</p><p>Archer</i></p><p><b>NRA oblivious</b></p><p>National Rifle Association advocates seem oblivious to the fact that their arguments against gun control are both threadbare and baseless. Nobody is suggesting guns be outlawed but rather that there should be reasonable limits to the type of weapons available to civilians and reasonable licensing and registration.</p><p>The most recent argument is that the issue is best addressed by more guns, not less, as evidenced by some instance of a gun-toting miscreant being stopped by a gun-toting patriot. The obvious fallacy of this argument is that, for any such instance, there are hundreds of deaths attributable to the easy access to firearms.</p><p>It is tragic that it took an incident like the Newtown massacre to bring society's focus back to the issues of gun control and the NRA lobby's hammerlock on Congress. Perhaps this will be the one positive consequence of this unspeakably horrendous event.</p><p><i>Don Goodman,</p><p>Archer</i></p><p><b>Show a little respect, Mr. President</b></p><p>For nearly the last four years President Barack Obama has continued to disrespect our country and our military.</p><p>First he refused to wear our flag on his lapel so as not to “hurt” others. He did his “Apology Tour.” His wife stated publicly that she was never proud of the U.S. until he was in office. </p><p>But what really gets under my skin is when he gets off of his helicopter. There is always a Marine at the bottom of the stairs saluting him. I've never seen him acknowledge the soldier in the least, and he salutes to the sky! How disrespectful can this be?</p><p>How could this country re-elect this person who wants to destroy America as we have known it?</p><p>Shameful.</p><p><i>Joe Galardy,</p><p>Gainesville</i></p>